And yet, I still find myself rooting based predominantly on hotness. I was heartened to see that the girls at kickette also make their picks on this "face/body talent ratio". So in that vein, I've compiled an easily understandable guide to the Wimbledon Men's Round of 16 match-ups.
Men's Round of 16 (Top Half of the Draw)
Federer v. Hewitt
If you look at the stats, the head-to-head is 13-8 in Federer's favor. And this is Federer, the Tiger Woods/Thierry Henry of tennis, on his way to breaking ol' Pete's record. This is all to say that everything is seemingly in Federer's favor. Still, Hewitt has a bad boy quality that is desirable and hard to resist. Being Australian is unequivocally hotter than being Swiss. And Hewitt has a cute kid, so that accessory makes him seem responsibly sexy. But this is also the Hewitt who had a curly mullet for years. Even ironically, mullets are awful. Unequivocally. So does Federer have enough allure to beat out a post-mullet Aussie dad? The Rog is not terrible when shirtless and he exudes an amount of class rarely seen anywhere of late. And to top it all off, Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour is a fan. She's one tough cookie to crack, so if she's on board, I'm on board. Federer in four sets.
Verdasco v. Ancic
These two have only played once (at Queen's last week) and Ancic won, though it was a close match. Therefore, a physical comparison is really the only way to go. Verdasco is actually only a few months older than Ancic (they're both 24), but looks far more aged. That means both that Verdasco looks haggard and that Ancic has a babyface. However, Ancic is three inches taller (6'5") and has a far superior focused look, thus the balance is restored. Another strike against Verdasco is an unfortunate promo pic for Hard Rock. Ancic in five sets.
Safin v. Wawrinka
I will be completely upfront about my bias here: Marat Safin is undoubtedly my favorite tennis players and one of my favorite men of all time. He has two majors and an unbelievably sexy temper to his name, so he can do no wrong in my eyes. Still, the "facts" remain that Wawrinka has a 2-0 lead in this match-up. Safin is known for being consistently inconsistent. He is currently riding a wave of two strong wins over seeds (Djokovic and Seppi) and Wawrinka will hopefully be another. Safin in straight sets.
Baghdatis v. Lopez
These two have only met once before, Baghdatis with the win. However, Baghdatis sometimes has difficulty in clutch situations and playing someone with Lopez's hotness level would definitely need some extra oomphf. Hair oomphf is non-transferable and actually depletes other oomphf areas, so the Cypriot really stands no chance. If that wasn't enough, Lopez has the advantage of being Spanish and having piercing blue eyes. Obviously the success of Spain in the Euros is transferable, thus Lopez and his amazing bone structure will continue onward. Lopez in four.
